Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Karen Hancock has won Christy Awards for each of her first four novels--Arena and the first three books in the Legends of the Guardian-King series, The Light of Eidon, The Shadow Within, and Shadow over Kiriath. She graduated from the University of Arizona with bachelor's degrees in biology and wildlife biology. Along with writing, she is a semi-professional watercolorist and has exhibited her work in a number of national juried shows. She and her family reside in Arizona.

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Lacey McHenry accepts a prestigious research fellowship at the world-renowned Kendell-Jakes Longevity Institute, she sees it as a new start on life. But a disturbing late-night encounter with an intruder leads to an unexpected cover-up by Institute authorities, and she soon realizes there's more going on than she ever imagined.

She finds a supporter in genetics researcher Cameron Reinhardt. However, Reinhardt is a favorite of the Institute's director, and she can't help wondering if he, too, is in on the cover-up. The brilliant but absentminded researcher turns out to have his own secrets, some of them dark and deadly. The Enclave is characterized by adventure, intrigue, spiritual analogy, and romance, all set in an unusual but fully realized world--one that may have its foundations on earth but which, the more one learns of it, doesn't seem much like the earth we know at all.

MY THOUGHTS:A very, very long time ago I read a novel entitled 1984 by George Orwell. It was a bit surreal to me then as the year 1984 had yet to arrive in my life. Well, reading Karen Hancock's book, The Enclave, has caused me to feel that same surreal feeling. In 2009 talk of genetic alteration, cloning, and the every present debate on global warming...top that with a national leader that is bizarre enough to alter the world as we know it, and The Enclave isn't as fictional as you'd first imagine.

Folks, ever since Satan rebelled against God, mankind has attempted to control the world, wield supreme power over his destiny and seek eternal life through every imaginable means save the blood of Christ. As misguided and sinful as that notion is, that is the way our world spirals downward every moment. Well, Karen Hancock explores this futile search for eternal power by using the elements provided by twenty-first century science. She weaves a tale that draws you in and carries you on a wild ride into the imagination and fills the pages with mounting tension, life or death struggles and good old fashioned combat until she reaches a climactic and satisfying ending.

The Enclave is very well written, and I appreciated the strong character of Cameron Reinhart. His testimony redeemed the novel in many ways, and I thought he was entirely believable despite the speculative story line. I'll be honest and tell you that I was uncomfortable with the speculation of others surviving the flood save Noah and his family. This is not the first novel to explore and use this theory in the story line, but I am uncomfortable with anything that fills in areas where the Bible is silent. However, it is a theory that many find fascinating, and in this instance fits the story line hand in glove. Other that this one uncomfortable idea, The Enclave is simply entertainment at it's best. A well-written, ever escalating story-line gets my vote every time! Please, check it out!

2 comments:

Kim, I wrote a long comment in response to you over at my site, but I forgot to mention that Karen Hancock addressed the Biblical passages dealing with the Nephilim over on her blog. In her wrap today she talked about why she believes they are descendants of angels/humans. Quite interesting.

Disclaimer

I just wanted to state clearly here on my blog that the books I review are provided to me in exchange for my opinion and thoughts. I am a member of two blog alliances and I work directly with publicists and publishers at their request to review a variety of Christian fiction and non-fiction books. I receive no compensation other than free copies of the books to read, and when a give away is offered, that copy of the book is also provided by the publisher for that exact purpose.

I give my opinions both positively and negatively and will continue to do so as time permits and as I am able. I do this because I love to read and I love to share my thoughts with others who love good books and Christian stories.